Apparatus for moistening stencil card blanks



Sept. 26, 1933- H p ELLIOTT 1,928,311

APPARATUS FOR MOISTENING STENCIL CARD BLANKS Filed Oct. 24 1932 f q /6 7.2g. 3.

wwwnjm ATTORNEY p in the typewriting machine,

Patented Sept. 26, 1933 UNITED STA t APPARATUS FOR MOISTENING STENCIL CARD BLANKS Harmon P. Elliott, Watertown, Mass, assignor to Elliott Addressing Machine Company, a cor-' poration of Massachusetts Application October 24,

9 Claims,

This invention is designed to provide a simple apparatus in which a stack of paper stencil blanks in card form may be placed and successively moistened before being removed for the purpose of making them into stencils by cutting or indenting them on a typewriting machine.

Many millions of stencils are annually made for use in addressing machines, such stencils being in the shape of small cards having a rectangular frame of pasteboard or cardboard to'which is pasted or cemented a strip of Yoshino paper which has been coated with a suitable composition which when damp can be partially displaced by the blows of the type in a typewriting machine so as to indent the type characters in said coating and remove portions of said coating at such points, thereby rendering those portions of the coated paper permeable to ink so that a true stencil is produced.

"Heretofore it has been customary for the operator or typist forming the stencils as above described to moisten the blanks with a sponge, or damp roller, or otherwise, before putting them but this operation consumes a certain amount of time and the degree of moistening thereby produced is not uniform and not always of the correct degree. The present invention supplies a simple, portable piece of apparatus in which a stack of such stencil'blanks may be placed and the moistening of the bottom blank in the stack evenly effected while the typist is cutting another blank to form a stencil. On removal of each moistened blank from such holder the next one is brought into contact with the moistened padbeneath, and its moistening in turn can be efiected while the blank just removed is being cut to form a stencil containing a name and address or other legend. I

The best form of apparatus atpresent known to me embodying my, invention is illustrated in the accompanying sheet of drawing in which Fig. 1 is a longitudinal, vertical section of the apparatus taken on the irregular line 1-1 of Fig. 2. Y

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is a detail end elevation with parts broken away showing the apparatus for pushing the bottom blank part way out from the holder, as indicated in broken lines in Fig. 2, and

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic detail showing parts of said apparatus in the position assumed when the 'holder is raised to partially eject the bottom stencil blank into the position indicated in broken linesin Fig. 1.

1932 Serial No. 639,172

Throughout the drawing like reference figures indicate like parts. The particular apparatus here shown as constituting an embodiment of theinvention consists of four main elements; a base member, indicated generally by 1, carrying the moistening means; a holder fora stack of the stencil blanks, indicated generally by 2, which has an opening at the bottom exposing the stencilizable surface of the bottom blank in the stack so that it may rest on the pad or other moistening means carried by the base member; a hinge mechanism, indicated generally at 3, connecting the base and holder so that the latter may be swung'up away from the moistening means; and a pusher mechanism, indicated generally at 4, for automatically forcing one end of the bottom blank outside the holder whenever the latter is raised, thereby enabling the operator to easily grasp the protruding end of the moistened blank and pull it out for insertion in a typewriting machine to form a stencil therefrom. The details of construction of these four elements may be varied so long as they cooperate in substantially the manner to produce substantially the results hereinafter to be described.

The base member comprises'a tank 5 contain-' ing water 11 and posts 6, 6a, which support a table 8 for a moisture-holding pad; 10 is asheet of chamois leather which may rest on said table with its ends reaching downinto the water 11. Table 8 is held on posts 6, So, by dowels 9, 9a, which are of different diameters so that the table can not be mounted in a reverse position. The top of tank 5 is nearly all open leaving only side strips 1'1, 17. At one end is the bracket 12 supporting the perforated lugs 13, 13, in which is mounted the hinge shaft or pintle 21 for the swinging hinged element 19. 14 is an upwardly extending platespringfastened to .brackets 12 by screws 15, 15, and having a curved upper free end. 16 is a downwardly extending lug from the under side of bracket 12 into which a pin 36 is screwed.

The holder for thestack of stencil blanks 40 and a hinge mounting therefor'comprise a skele-' ton magazine formed by the tour grooved uprights 26, 26, having feet 29 which are fastened by screws 39 to the parallel, horizontally extending'bars 18, 18, each of which is fastened at one end by screws 20, 20, to the hinge member 19, which'swings on pintle 21. The other end of parallel bars 18, 18, are'connected together by the cross bar 23 which is fastened to their under surfaces by some ofthe'screws 39. Along the lower portions of the inside edges of the parallel bars 18, 18, are inwardly extending ledges 25, 25 (see Figs. 1 and 4) which underhang the side edges of the bottom blank and lift it, and the stack of blanks above it, when the holder is swung up on its hinge. On one end of pintle 21 is a cnlar smeniflr. d, himmay b9. grasped fqrpull'ing out; the pintle;.when;the holder, and base member are to be separated.

The rib 27 formed by the edge of the hinge member 19-cooperates with the curved face of spring 14 to retain the blank holder in raised position with yielding pressuraasc indicatula in. Fig. 4.

The pusher mechanism comprises thethins lide 30 moving in oppositely disposed gr. qgy. es;2d,.2 4,

in the ends of the inner faces of the parallel.

bars 18, 18, as shown in Fig. 3, (which slots are so located that the slide 30 will strike the end of the bottom blank in stack 40 when, moved toward the latter, but will slip under the rest of ma tack; at lanks.) oseibs; with. ma mas-m for automatically reciprocatingsaidr slideas -the; ank Q ti a .utomatiqallyv ais igor; awria anthis urma-Lpm d absllrsrackfil RiYPRQ-r lug. flfiflflidi l i mglshilfi mem Trha nds-fi haw; cansa a nsaeaapinBG- et 111 246 .1%:37 t en a e Pia sw n r 3 are:

iacii a mm hears aeqssli e 3o.- The-111 3 1-. he: r nt ss; i I

l. a lr rank'. 3 l t1 ikathe wall 0 ank'iwhen. e blank -mids hasbeea; iiteQa-c imQ stsQ assh n n-. &-.- 4, d

here erv s-as st p. a ainst-J nke upward mqvementn f: aidi lderf Y A'fiw sht e lac d asae licwerj QQzWR I 24 a 0.1 1 tenci lan smi h a azi e ope iqni heiwa srr- .1; ha e P:- 9"= ie. n rfianl f; h hamo s 9 a ti s 1 he: abla o; ha he atte mat u p We to 1' he tencilizahle H rt 3 ha otta iil i al ki estin n. i when heya t are n han si ignl herni in, full; lines, in Fig. 1. when; the. operatgn' is;

ready to cut; onindent; this. dampened blank ta:

form. a. stencil: helswin s the..- blank holder. up

ward on hinge .pintle2-1; as by grasping. the; pro

jecting end 2801: one-ofL-thebaisJB; Thismoves the pusher mechanism intothe position shown-4 inFig; 4, thereby shoving'themoistened blank partway cutofthemagazine, as indicated: in dotted lines at}? in Fig; 1, sothatthe operator then v grasps the protruding end 7 and pulls the mai t sd lan l i he ur n l- 5" it t the, y sw ii n mac ineth'fqn ratqr, etsjg ofthe holder to'thus withdrawtheblankthe holder is held in tipped a nsist d; as first laii s-;. s.:-. eina cu tmtsno-exc ssivemoist ninstthczbottqm stena cihblanklmaysoccur'. rom nmlqns d ntactrw th.

r themoisteningmd-l Other formsL or pusher, mechanismand; of; means permitting upward movement: of: the;

blank holder, and: other formsfof moisteningtde I vices could bdsdbstituteddor those shown, so

long-as they cooperate in} substantially the-iman- I s ot ed ti' al aiaiad s ilis t T 2 dm. lank canjbe thusiorced. out because there; is a free snags 1w betw e c. o qm nqs 1 messing upri ht 6 ndthq psrg uriaw I; ross bar;

is ,aptto be trappedeat points more or less remote from the borders of the pad and uneven moistening results. To avoid this I prefer to have the initial contact established at one end or edge of the pad and extended gradually from that line acrosscor alongithe contacting surfaces. For this produce the results above reason-I make the end of pad table 8 nearest the hinge ninth} 2l'slightly-higher than the other end, Fig. 1;. The bottom stencil blank therejgreiirst strikes the chamois at that end as theholder 2 swings down and the area of contact is-thereafter gradually extended to the other end of theihlank, all air being driven out toward that other end as the line of contact advances.

Whea i e. i t a s qv he e ci qldc l dm er- .e h isml anl e. fte as a unitimm base-mem er 1 as the slot- 38 permits. ellr ank .n. wa rpm. Pin. .6 The ham s n n. be ad ted-.1 nd water s-Id; n: h ank. 5 bef r hanar s re ea wb fi sli ht u a re of h pa t cular te il anks-h re sh w .s ntrih es o hat pr rsss v ntact c i n with he; m isien na. nai

This. rvatur es ts. om a. nt nu us. strip;

l nk ame hav n een. ound; a r mi fi r e. iame er. n; he man factu n m' .=s he c n-v x iacaso r d ad. e; under Side i chi b c n t e: ma zine achhneof; a s ack-e ar ha cdin n r t m l;

anks: OI iWJAfiQEficpmprisingin combi 19. 1; base:

ha inhavina ni x sed p ar urm as e nosed ma azine o ack: of such-blank .w ih 1 5 o pe m tzfihabo m: ne tot ist= n sai d; t ich. ha ward sz p nattbe o tom xtendin a ledge alon s site-side unde ha s nsthe d es of;- ai bo to n 0. @5 tolift vsa gstack with a dima az ne -r h z a ier; is-raiscd, a, Dushermountedto slide. along said ledges at; one end thereofand engage the bottom; stencihblankQ resting thereon, a, hinge connecting saidmagazine andbase member-having R5 9 angles to said ledges and;

omewhat: offset: from said magazine,- a yielding axis extending; at, right friction. mecl'lanism engaging; said: magazine to hold it in raised position after it has been um on: said; hinge, ands mechanism. f oym said: pusher v and the. bottom; stencil blank; along, said; ledgesiaway, from.v said: hinge whenever; the;

magazine is. swung said; bottom card;

upwardlvther n; whe eby part way outer-the magazine.

2.-;The. combination ofra moisture-containing ture containing surface 'o so that: the; under face;- of: the, bottom stencil blank will'rest; on said1surface whensaid holder.- and mechanism auto-H is. in its lowermost position, matically..forcingmuch-bottomstencilsblank.end-

wise partly out of said holder whenlthedattcrwisl 159 ais his-c r tu e K membe ha in ompar ment: adantedi o hold wat and z a e ab r lD d.

after being lifted away from: said pad, is automatically slid along said ledges i4? raised sufficiently to remove said blank from contact with said moisture-containing surface.

3. A combination such as defined in claim 2 in which said holder comprises a magazine rectangular in horizontal cross section, open at the top for the introduction of a stack of stencil blanks, and having a pair of inwardly projecting ledges extending along the bottom of its opposite sides on which the edges of the bottom blank may rest, said holder being hinged to said base along a line offset from one end of said pair of ledges and having an opening at the other end thereof through which the bottom stencil blank may be slid outwardly.

'4. An apparatus such as defined in claim 2 combined with yielding pressure means for retaining said holder in raised position. 1

5. A vertically movable holder for a stack of card shaped stencil blanks having a bottom opening exposing the stencilizable portion of the bottom blank in said stack, combined with moistening means on which said portion of said bottom blank rests when said holder is lowered, and mechanism for automatically pushing said bottom blank part way out from said holder when the latter is raised.

6. The combination with a swinging holder for a stack of cards, a base member to which said holder is hinged, a, card pusher mounted to slide in said holder, and a bell-crank slotted at its ends and pivoted on said holder, said slide carrying a pin engaging one of said slots and said base carrying a pin engaging the other, together with stop means for preventing said pins being moved out of said slots.

'7. A combination such as defined in claim 6 in which said stop means comprises a portion of said bell-crank and a portion of the base member against which said bell-crank is forced by the movement of said holder.

8. An upwardly movable holder for a stack of card shaped stencil blanks having a bottom opening exposing the stencilizable portion of the bottom blank in said stack, combined with moistening means on which said portion of said bottom blank rests when said holder is lowered, the surface of said moistening means lying in a plane extending at an angle to the surface of said bottom blank at the moment of initial contact therewith.

9. A combination such as defined in claim 8 in which said holder has a hinged support at amend, and in which said moistening means comprise a fiat surface so adjusted that the portion thereof nearest said hinge first makes contact with the stencil blank when the holder containing said blank is swung downward upon the pad.

HARMON P. ELLIOTT. 

